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- Rocket Mortgage Classic was added to the PGA Tour in 2019
- Tournament has invested over US$3.5m into local organisations around Detroit
The Rocket Mortgage financial services brand has renewed its title sponsorship deal with the PGA Tour for the Detroit-based event until 2027.
The tournament, which has a US$7.5 million prize purse and was added to the premier US-based golf tour in 2019, will continue to be known as the Rocket Mortgage Classic for the duration of the contract.
The annual event at Detroit Golf Club has proven to be a well-regarded event by the PGA Tour, winning its ‘Fair Way Award’ for community initiatives and use of local businesses.
Rocket Mortgage has been an official partner of the PGA Tour since 2014, and will continue its wide-ranging partnership with the PGA Tour and PGA Champions Tour through this new deal.
The extension sees the brand continue its ‘Changing the Course’ initiative, which aims to tackle the digital divide in Detroit by providing technology, internet access and digital literacy for communities around the city.
In 2020, the Rocket Mortgage Classic raised more than US$2.7 million for charitable causes, up from US$1.2 million it brought in for the charity in the previous year.
The PGA Tour says that more than US$3.5 million of this has been invested directly into organisations based in Detroit and the surrounding area by the Rocket Giving Fund, which hosts and manages the event.
Together with the Connect 313 Fund, the Rocket Giving Fund has launched the EBB 313 initiative, which subsidises internet costs in eligible houses across Detroit. The Connect 313 Fund was set up by the City of Detroit, Rocket Mortgage Classic, Rocket Companies Microsoft, and the United Way of Southeastern Michigan.
“The Rocket Mortgage Classic is an unparalleled opportunity to highlight all the great work taking place in Detroit, one of the great sports towns in America, and we’re excited to continue our partnership with Rocket Mortgage and the Rocket Mortgage Classic through 2027,” said Jay Monahan, PGA Tour commissioner.
“Thanks to today’s extension, the Rocket Giving Fund will continue to provide significant technological benefits for the citizens of Detroit through the Connect 313 Fund.
“We are proud that the Rocket Mortgage Classic has been a leader from day one in ensuring – through its work with local businesses and community leaders – that the tournament represents the diversity of the community.”
The PGA Tour has also extended its partnership with technology provider CDW, which will see the company become the PGA Tour and PGA Champions’ official technology solutions advisor.
CDW’s technology and insights power ShotLink, the PGA Tour’s live scoring system.
Since first partnering with the Tour in 2008, CDW has helped incorporate a number of new technologies into the ShotLink scoring system, and has also integrated its technologies into the new the PGA Tour’s headquarters in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
“CDW provides the Tour with valuable advisory services and expertise that continue to enhance our technological capabilities and benefit our tournaments, broadcast partners, players and fans in many ways,” said Brian Oliver, the PGA Tour’s executive vice president of corporate partnerships.
Ken Lovell, the PGA Tour’s senior vice president of golf technologies, added: “CDW has been integral to the growth of ShotLink and delivering real-time scoring across all Tour platforms that reach millions of fans around the world.
“We are constantly working to innovate, and CDW is an invaluable partner in that pursuit.”
